The present invention relates generally to a catalyst assembly for an automotive vehicle, and more particularly, to the catalyst structure assembly.
Current production automotive vehicles have internal combustion engines that have catalytic converters to reduce emissions of regulated gasses. The regulated gasses include hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen. The catalytic converter contains various catalysts that react with the exhaust gasses to convert them into other gasses.
In addition to the catalytic converter, a muffler and resonator are typically located in the exhaust gas path. The muffler and resonator attenuate the sound from the internal combustion engine. The muffler and resonator are coupled to the tail pipe of the vehicle which typically extends out from the rear portion of the vehicle.
It is a goal of automotive engineers to reduce the number of parts and design complexity of the automotive vehicle. To accommodate the muffler, catalytic converter and resonator, the floor stamping of the vehicle is modified. The modification of the floor stamping increases the cost of the vehicle and adds to the design complexity.
It would therefore be desirable to reduce the cost of the automotive vehicle by eliminating the muffler and resonator to reduce the complexity of the vehicle.
In one aspect of the invention, a catalyst assembly for an exhaust system comprises a housing and a porous support structure having a plurality of channels. A plurality of catalyst pellets are disposed within at least some of the channels. A retainer is positioned adjacent to the support structure for retaining the pellets within the channels.
In a further aspect of the invention, some of the plurality of parallel channels are inlet channels and the other channels are outlet channels. The inlet channels and the outlet channels are coupled between the porous support structure. The plurality of catalyst pellets may be disposed in either the inlet channels, the outlet channels, or both. The position of the pellets depends upon many factors including the type of engine and the amount of desired reduction of regulated gasses.
One advantage of the invention is that the catalyst assembly may be located relatively close to the engine manifold within the engine compartment. Another advantage of the invention is that the catalyst assembly may be designed to reduce the noise emissions from the internal combustion engine and thus reduce the need for a resonator and a muffler. Yet a further advantage of the invention is that by eliminating the muffler and resonator, the floor stamping for the vehicle may be reduced in complexity.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent when viewed in light of the detailed description of the preferred embodiment when taken in conjunction with the attached drawings and appended claims.